18 U.S.C. § 1112 — Manslaughter

(a) Manslaughter is the unlawful killing of a person without malice. The law recognizes two kinds. Voluntary manslaughter happens when someone kills during a sudden quarrel or in the heat of passion. Involuntary manslaughter is different. It happens when a death results from committing an unlawful act that is not a felony. It also happens when a death results from a lawful act carried out in an unlawful way, or performed without proper care. (b) Subsection (b) sets the penalties within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States. A person guilty of voluntary manslaughter can be fined or imprisoned for up to fifteen years, or both. A person guilty of involuntary manslaughter can be fined or imprisoned for up to eight years, or both.

The source credit shows this section was enacted June 25, 1948, by chapter 645 of that year's act (62 Stat. 756), as part of the general revision and codification of Title 18 of the United States Code. The record further indicates the section was amended three times: by Public Law 103-322 (September 13, 1994), Public Law 104-294 (October 11, 1996), and Public Law 110-177 (January 7, 2008), each altering specific provisions as reflected in the statutory citations. Historical context: The 1948 act is generally understood to have been a comprehensive recodification of federal criminal law, consolidating and restating existing offenses—including manslaughter, which had long been recognized in Anglo-American law as an unlawful killing without malice—rather than creating new substantive law from scratch. The distinction between voluntary and involuntary manslaughter reflected in this section tracks longstanding common-law categories. The record does not establish the specific legislative purpose behind the 1994, 1996, or 2008 amendments to this particular section; without access to the underlying committee reports or floor statements, it would be speculative to characterize why Congress chose to adjust penalties or definitions at those points. Readers seeking that history should consult the legislative history of Public Laws 103-322, 104-294, and 110-177 directly.